


City of Secrets: Introduction Book

by OnyxHarmony



Series: City of Secrets [1]
Category: Ninjago - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Sniper - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-07
Updated: 2019-12-06
Packaged: 2021-02-17 22:15:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21700606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OnyxHarmony/pseuds/OnyxHarmony
Summary: They all came from different places. Different homes and situations, but in the end they joined the cause. Something is brewing in Ninjago, something tearing the city to pieces from the inside out. A snake is pulling the strings behind the scenes.(These are a series of one shots for my newest au, in which Dareth and Ronin run a justified crime syndicate. These introduce the EM's on Dareth's team. Chen is the main villain. Elements ARE present in this au, and not all elemental masters are on the same side.  Other characters will be introduced in the main fic. )
Series: City of Secrets [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1564195
Kudos: 8





	1. Fight or Flight

Jay grumbled as he came into his parent’s trailer that day after school, dropping his bag next to the door and smiling at his mom. “Momma, you wouldn’t believe the day I had. School killed me.”

Edna chuckled and turned away from the sink where she was washing dishes, drying her hands on the dishrag. “Oh gosh, ya sure it was that bad dear? Come, sit and have a snack so you can relax a bit before startin’ on that homework.”

He sat down in the chair, laying his head on the cool table. “Alright maybe it didn’t kill me, but it’s stressful, Ma.”

She opened the fridge and peered inside, trying to think. “Oh I’m sure it is, dear. But in the long run it’ll help you in life. What did ya learn about today? Anythin’ interesting?”

Jay was quiet for a moment, watching his mother pull some vegetables out and some ranch dressing. “Math, sciences, stuff like that. We did learn how to seal a bleeding wound-” He chuckled when Edna paused in cutting carrots up and turned to look at him in confusion. “In science class, mom. We were learning how fast blood can clot within the human body and our teacher told us a war story, it’s alright.”

She nodded, satisfied with that answer and turned back to the cutting board, continuing to chop. “Alright then, as long as you’re learning and doing your best. That’s all we ever wanted, Jay.” Edna soon sat the chopped veggies and ranch down in front of Jay, seeing Ed come in and wipe the grease off his face. Edna put her hands on her hips. “Are you still fiddlin’ with that darn motorcycle, Ed? I know it’s your pet project, but gosh darn it-”

Ed chuckled and kissed the top of her head as he walked to the sink. “Ah, it may be my pet project but you’re the apple of my eye.”

Edna chuckled and shook her head, leaving him to wash the grease off his hands while she cleaned up the vegetable scraps.

Ed paused in washing his hands, turning to her and lowering his voice. “Hon, did you pay the rent for the junkyard?”

She froze, expression shifting to worry as she lowered her voice so Jay wouldn’t hear. “No, we were a bit short this month so I gave them all we had saved up for the rent-”

Ed sighed and looked out the window over the sink at his junkyard. “Well we just have to hope they’ll be a bit lenient on us, gosh darn it. Jay’s sixteen today, Edna. I know we gotta pay rent on this place but we gotta save up for his future. We’re gettin’ old...something could happen and I don’t want him to be left with nothin’.” He finished washing his hands and dried them, turning to Jay and sitting down at the table with him. “Son did I ever tell you about the secret lab at my last job?”

Jay internally groaned and let out a sigh. His dad always had the craziest stories. Secret labs, that he repaired things on a military base before retiring and opening a junk yard..secret military weapons. He chuckled and looked at his dad. “You have, but I don’t mind hearing about it.” He munched on a carrot, laying his head in his hand and leaning on it as he listened to Ed talk.

“Well, about seventeen years ago-about a year before we adopted you, I worked on a secret military base. By golly, that was the most interesting job I ever had.” Ed chuckled and watched Edna set a mug of tea down in front of him. “Ah, thanks dear.”

Edna nodded and carefully went back to cleaning the dishes-she always loved listening to his stories.

“Y’see, it was only my second day on the job and I get moved down to the twentieth floor. That’s twentieth floor down son, don’t forget that.” He took a sip of the tea in his mug, trying to think. “Gosh when I got down there and heard the boys and gals all a buzz about this new revolutionary weapon they wanted to build, I..”

Jay paused, setting a carrot down. “Weapon? Dad you never talked about a weapon before.”

Ed chuckled and looked down into his tea cup. “Yeah, some non-human or partially human weapon with special reflexes, sharp teeth and the ability to ki...” He looked at Jay's concerned face, shaking his head. “It ain’t important now, base closed down two years ago..I don’t think there’s anyone left in there.”

He frowned. “When did you retire from the base?”

Edna chuckled. “About the time you turned ten, Jay. He came home and threw his hands up with a big ol’ smile on his face, picked you up and tossed ya in the air. Said his family was more important than some secret job.”

They continued to talk, discussing the details of Ed’s job and various other topics.

She looked up at the clock and frowned. “Golly..we’ve been here for hours. It’s already ten at night. Jay, why don’t ya go get some sleep. It’s the weekend so you can stay up for another hour or more if ya want, but you did say you were a might tired.”

He sighed and looked at the table. “Yeah, yeah it is kinda late.” Getting up from the table and washing his dirty dishes in the sink, he hugged his mom and walked over to his dad, who stopped him and held up his hand, watching Edna leave the room.

“Now son, we didn’t forget that today is your birthday...I left you a few gifts in your room while you were in school, alright?”

Jay gave his dad a small smile and nodded, leaning down and hugging him tightly. Ed squeezed him for a minute, shutting his eyes.

“We love ya, son.” He patted Jay’s back and let him go.

“I love ya too, Dad. G’night.” Jay headed to his room, pausing when he saw the gifts on his desk..and quite a few of them. Grabbing a smaller one and opening it, he chuckled at the old worn out ID Badge. “Keepin’ up the facade, huh Pops?” He stuffed the badge in his backpack that he’d taken back to his room, sitting on his bed. “Ain’t no way he ever worked at some secret base.” Jay shook his head and rubbed his eyes, opening another gift. A new wrench set. Hey, now this one he liked. He picked up one wrench and weighed it in his hand. “Got some good heft to it, too.” Yawning and setting the wrench back on his desk, Jay got into his blankets and shut his eyes, drifting off to sleep.

Jay grunted as he woke up four hours later, squinting at the glaring red numbers on his alarm clock.

Two in the morning.

Right.

Jay yawned and coughed, trying to swallow. “Need some water…” He mumbled as he got out of bed, carefully stretching before heading out of his room into the hallway. Once in the kitchen, Jay had his water and began his walk back to the bedroom-only to stop once the scent of blood hit his nose. Gagging and covering his mouth, he looked around for the source of the smell. He stopped when he found it.

Two masked men were standing over his parent’s bodies in their bedroom.

“Oh...Oh my god! Mom! Dad?!” Jay nearly screamed, shaking and watching their bodies bleeding out on the floor.

That was a mistake.

The two men whipped around and ran for Jay.

Jay ran to his room, looking around for something to protect himself with. His wrench! That would work. Grabbing it and readying himself, he watched the door burst open and the two men run in. He took his first swing, missing.

The second swing hit, the heft of the wrench knocking one man out. Blood pooled under his head and he lay motionless.

The second man lunged at Jay and stabbed the knife he had into his shoulder.

“Fuck-!” Jay grunted in pain and swung at the second man, missing.

“Boss says no witnesses to your parents, sorry kid! Unless you got the cash they owe and the plans your dad knew about, ain’t no way you’re leaving here alive!” He swung his knife again and caught Jay in the arm, grinning when Jay staggered backward and nearly fell.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Jay cried out, swinging his wrench and slamming it into the man’s arm. “They didn’t owe any money! The previous job my dad worked is just a story!” His eyes watered as he swung again and again, slamming the wrench into the second man’s head over and over. “It-It’s just a story!” He sat down on the floor, clutching his head with his bloodied hands. Jay shakily rocked back and forth. “J-Just a story…”

Dareth carefully stepped through the trashed trailer, avoiding broken glass. He didn’t usually come personally to things like this, but Ronin was still resting from the previous day’s search. Pausing when he came to Ed and Edna’s bedroom, he carefully stepped inside and looked them over.

Ed and Edna were bloody, skulls smashed in with some sort of blunt object. Likely a bat, or wrench. Edna’s hair was a matted mess, eye socket crushed and blood dripping from her nose. Ed on the other hand, was worse for the wear. Various stab wounds covered his body, and his tongue was missing.

Dareth covered the two of them with a blanket, making sure their eyes were closed. “Shame...nice people, y’all were.” He left the room and headed toward the back, listening for any noise. “Hello…? Anyone in here?”

“G-Go away! No one is here!” Jay sobbed from inside his room, still trying to convince himself this wasn’t real.

Dareth sighed and came up to the door, slowly pushing it open. “Hey...Jay, right?”

“H...How do you know my name?” Jay wiped his eyes, smearing blood across his face.

“I was friends with your parents.” Dareth knelt down beside Jay. “I’m sorry about all this. Be glad you’re alive, Jay. It’s gonna hurt for a long time, but you can’t stay here. Do you think you can pack a bag and meet me outside? I can take you to my place so you can wash up and try to calm down.”

Jay slowly lifted his head, watching Dareth with an empty stare. “A...Alright. What’s your name?” He carefully stood up, looking around for his backpack.

Dareth gently patted him on the back. “Dareth. M’name is Dareth.”


	2. Discarded

“Greg, is it alive? What is that thing?” Simon frowned and watched his friend poke at the titanium looking human with a stick.

“I dunno Simon, but it doesn’t move...you think it’s dead?”

Simon shook his head. “Nuh, it ain’t dead! Metal men don’ die, mama said so!” He opened his mouth to speak again, only to stop when he heard someone coming. “Greg get down, someone’s in the junkyard!” Simon dove behind a pile of junk, reaching out and grabbing Greg to tug him behind the pile with him.

“You sure you heard someone? No one really comes here...”

Simon shushed him and nodded, pointing to the man with the straw hat who was talking to himself and sifting through the metal.

“Whatcha think he’s here for, Simon?”

He shrugged and looked past Greg. “I unno, but look at the stuff he’s wearin’. It’s not a suit but it looks real expensive for adventure stuff.”

Greg gasped. “Ooooh! Maybe he’s lookin’ for the metal guy!”

Simon shook his head and shushed his friend again, briefly glancing at the seemingly shut down droid and then back to the man who was searching through the junk. “We don’ know that, Greg. Maybe he’s jus lookin’ for a car part.”

He scoffed at Simon. “In an abandoned junkyard? Yeah, okay.” Greg playfully pushed his friend, though not out of their hiding spot.

Simon was silent as they watched the man sift through all the junk. When he turned around, Simon gasped. “Greg, he’s got an eyepatch! You think he’s a pirate?”

Greg shook his head. “Nah, he ain’t got a peg leg.” He tugged on his friend, frowning when the man passed by them.

“Hey...you poked that robot. Did you burn your hand?”

Greg paused, turning around to Simon. “Nuh. He was kinda soft. Well, in spots. Like he had a silver skin, maybe he’s metal underneath?”

Simon shrugged, looking over at the droid-he could just barely see him from their hiding spot. He watched his hand twitch, gasping and tugging harshly on Greg. “His hand moved! The robot’s hand moved!”

Greg shook his head, carefully climbing out of the other end of their hiding place. “No it didn’t, that thing don’t work. C’mon, the sun is going down and we don’t want your mom gettin’ worried again.”

Simon watched the droid as Greg began leaving the junkyard, seeing him slowly open his eyes and look around-before closing them again. Simon scrambled out of the junkyard after that, hearing the man with the eyepatch curse and still sift through the junk.

Ronin sighed as he dug around, stopping and looking over the information Dareth had given him on a scrap of paper. “Droid, old junkyard, left behind. Great, that’s very helpful.” He flipped it over, hoping something was written on the back. “You kill me sometimes, y’know that Dareth?” He said to no one, merely venting his frustrations. 

To be fair, Dareth had seemed preoccupied with something and in a hurry when he wrote this down.

“Alright let’s see, let’s see...droid...” Ronin squinted his eye as he peered out into the vast mountains of junk. “This is gonna take me all night..” He sighed and carefully walked through the junk, shaking his head. “I ain’t got nothin’ better to do, I guess.” Digging through another pile, he heard his phone ring. He tossed a random piece of scrap away as he answered it and sighed. “Yeah, what is it?”

Dareth chuckled on the other end of the line. “You sound frustrated, have you not found him yet?”

He shook his head and began walking to the south end of the junkyard, checking the signal on his phone. “I might lose ya in here, I don’t have that many bars. I ain’t found him yet, no. What does he look like?”

There was silence on the other end for a moment, then the shuffling of papers. “Says here he’s silver but he might be a bit older than in this photo..”

Ronin rubbed his face in frustration as he walked. “There’s a picture? Dareth-”

He chuckled. “Aww c’mon babe, you know I was in a hurry this evening when I gave you that piece of paper. Can’t ya give me a break? Please?”

Ronin grumbled and headed deeper into the junk, letting out a small chuckle. “You’re lucky you’re cute, y'know? Send me the picture and I’ll try some more to find him before all the daylight is gone.”

Dareth shuffled some more papers and cleared his throat. “Alright, just come home when you’re done, okay?”

The call ended and Ronin stuffed his phone back in his pocket, silently digging through more junk.

Zane opened his eyes again and scanned his surroundings, slightly confused.

Where was he?

What year was it?

And more importantly, where was his dad?

He looked around, pausing when he saw a man digging through the junk. Opening his mouth to speak, he frowned when no sound came out. Oh...right. He remembered the people that’d come here a while ago, smashing junk for stress release-or for fun, he hadn’t been able to tell. They’d taken a bat to him in several places-including his head and throat. They’d likely broken or damaged his voice chip. Watching the man slowly walk past while staring at his phone, Zane stretched his hand out, grabbing his ankle to get his attention.

Ronin let out a gasp and fell when Zane tugged on him, grunting when he landed flat on his back.

Zane frowned and let go of him, slowly standing up with a grating creak that made Ronin cover his ears.

“Holy hell, what is that?” Moving his hands away from his ears, Ronin grabbed his phone that had fallen a few inches away, looking at the picture of the droid through the cracked screen. “Dammit...I really gotta get a protective case for this thing.”

Zane leaned over Ronin and watched him, tilting his head.

Lifting his head, Ronin backed away and sat up, leaning against a pile of junk. “Don’t come any cl...” Ronin looked back down at his phone, and then at the droid. He squinted and looked over him suspiciously. “Your name Zane?”

He nodded and seemed to perk up at the fact that someone actually knew who he was, silently sitting in front of Ronin with the same grating noise.

“Hell, we need to get you some oil before you make my ears bleed.” He sighed and looked down at the picture on his phone again. “You’re rusted in places and some of your skin is missing...damn that sounds creepy now that I say it out loud.”

Zane frowned and looked over himself, examining the damage that sitting in the junkyard had done.

“Listen, Dar-...” Ronin paused. He didn’t know if this droid was bugged, and it was better to be safe than sorry. “Boss wants me to take you back to headquarters, take you in and give you a home. Is that alright?”

Zane paused, listening to him talk.

Home?

Would his father be there?

He looked down at the ground for a while, seemingly conflicted.

Was this man safe to go with?

Well, it was either go or slowly die in this junkyard.

Lifting his head and nodding, he watched Ronin examine him while texting.

“Say cheese. Boss wants proof I found ya.”

Cheese?

A Picture?

He smiled and lifted his arms up, expression delighted and happy. Watching Ronin take the picture and then put his phone away, he tried to put his arms down...only to pause and look at Ronin.

“...Are you stuck?”

Zane nodded and watched Ronin sigh.

“Alright, new rule. No more movin’ for you until we get back to headquarters and get you some oil. Should be able to carry you back to the car...” He stood up, leaning down and picking up Zane in his arms. Carrying him back to the car, Ronin sat him in the passenger seat and buckled him in. “Ready?”

He nodded and watched him get in the driver’s side. Soon the car was started and they were off, speeding down the road.

“When we get there, you gotta stay calm, alright? Boss ain’t gonna hurt ya. He ain’t never hurt no one that’s on our side before.”

Zane nodded and stared blankly at the road as they drove, wondering what this place would be like.

As they pulled into the forest on the outskirts of the city, Ronin turned his headlights on so they could see in the trees. Pulling into a cave, he silently drove further down and pulled into a parking space, turning the car off. “Alright, now when we go inside, Boss is gonna greet you first...he’s real friendly that way.” Getting out of the car and helping Zane out, Ronin carried him up a hidden set of stairs and opened a door that led to a living room.

Dareth looked up from the papers he was writing on and burst out laughing. “What...what did you do to him? Why does he look like he’s doin’ the wave at a ball game?"

Ronin grumbled and sat Zane down on the couch next to Dareth, who put his arm around Zane, still laughing. “He got stuck when I took the picture...he needs oil real bad and I don’t think he can talk.”

Dareth hugged his arm around Zane and sighed, calming down from his laughing fit. “My bad, that’s my bad Zane. Your pose there caught me off guard...you alright other than that? I think I can get Jay to fiddle with your voice if you’ll let him. He’s a real nice guy. Best mechanic and small arms man I got.” He cleared his throat and moved his arm away from Zane. “But you, you’re real special. I don’t think your dad woulda wanted ya rusting to death in a junkyard.”

Zane perked up at the mention of his dad, frantically looking around the room.

“Now calm down, your head might get stuck. He ain’t here, I’m sorry to say. I just read in a file about you that he created and worked on ya.”

Zane looked down, saddened.

Dareth rubbed his head and chuckled. “Ah it's alright. We’ll get you fixed up and let you rest some. Then we’ll try findin’ him, alright?”

He silently nodded.

Dareth smiled, patting his back gently. “My name’s Dareth. This is my home, and you’re welcome to stay. I ain’t never kicked no one out.”

Zane smiled as he watched Ronin heading into the other room.

“I’ll get Jay in here to at least get you some oil so you can walk to the mech bay, alright?” Dareth gestured to the door Ronin had gone through. “Jay will be coming through there in a moment.”

Zane gave him another tiny smile, watching him stand up and head into the other room.

“Welcome home, Zane. Glad to have ya on the team.”


	3. Something Else.

Cole dropped his bag on the couch as he came into the house that afternoon, letting out a groan of frustration. He went into the kitchen and opened the fridge, staring at the contents. He’d been leaving school early the past few days.

Not that it mattered, no one paid attention to the students.

He was getting more and more…

What was the word?

Bored?

No, that wasn’t it.

Looking around the fridge, he drummed his fingers along the edge of the door as he hummed to himself. His classes were getting dull. The material he was learning just seemed so repetitive. Sighing and leaning down to pick up a leftover slice of cake from the shelf, he smiled.

What a nice way to relax after school. A nice slice of cake and some television.

Footsteps began to echo down the stairs, as Lou came down from his office. “Cole? Are you home early again, son?”

A thump and a pained grunt was the answer given.

“Fuck!” Cole whined, rubbing his head as Lou came into the kitchen. “You scared the hell out of me, Dad. I thought you were still in the studio until four-”

Lou chuckled as he walked over to the fridge, making sure Cole hadn’t dropped or broken anything during his scare. “I apologize. I closed up early because I needed a few hours to sort through paperwork before dinner. Mostly bills, potential venues, you know the drill.”

Cole raised an eyebrow. “You still gonna perform for the kids in the hospital?” He grabbed a fork from the drawer and sat down at the kitchen table, shoving a forkful of cake into his mouth and gesturing with the utensil as he spoke. “Y’know, the kids in the west wing.”

“Of course. I think that’s mmmm...next week?” Lou closed the fridge, going over to the counter and pouring himself a cup of coffee. “Yeah, next Wednesday.” He paused and let out a sigh as he poured some creamer in his coffee. “Cole, listen. I want to talk to you about these...early leaves you’ve been giving yourself from school. I know you’ve been going to the dojo in town on some of these days, but others you either come home or...wander off. What’s this about, son? You’ve been taking fighting classes of all kinds since you got into middle school, and to be honest I thought it may have...died out once you hit highschool, but…”

Cole paused mid bite and set his fork down, frowning. “Why would I stop? I don’t...wanna go into music. I mean, I love music and I love playing piano, but I wouldn’t wanna make a career out of it.”

Lou shook his head as he turned around to look at his son. “I understand that, it’s not what I meant. I was just…” He looked to the side, then returned his gaze to Cole. “You’ll be seventeen tomorrow. I was just wondering if you knew what you wanted to do with your life. I mean, you never have to do the same thing forever, but do you have something you want to do?” He walked over to the table and sat down, placing his cup on the table. “This leaving school early…” Lou gestured with his hand at Cole. “Are you getting bored, son?”

Cole pushed around some cake crumbs around on his plate. This topic had been in his mind for a month now. “I’m not bored, I’m...frustrated. I wanna drop out, Dad.”

Silence filled the room after Cole’s confession.

Lou took a sip from his mug, brows knitting together in thought.

Cole’s fingers curled tightly around his fork. He was worried about what his dad might say.

Lou took a breath and slowly let it out, setting his cup down. “...Alright. You can, but what will you do after? I’m not hounding you, I’m genuinely curious.”

Cole’s fingers didn’t relax as he watched his dad. He was still nervous. “I...wanna work for Dareth.”

He wheezed on his next sip of coffee, coughing and trying to catch his breath. “What?! Cole you could be-” Lou sputtered, trying to think of something to say. “What he does is noble and absolutely wonderful for the people who-”

“Never get justice.” Cole looked to the side for a moment. “He helps people. Kinda like a...superhero, I guess. A vigilante. I dunno who all works for him, but I’ve seen the good it’s caused. He does more than the police can do.”

Lou nodded and watched his son. “You’re right. He does. Dareth has done a lot of good for a lot of people. Cases that have gone cold, cases that were never bothered with.”

“Exactly.” Cole slowly relaxed, letting out a sigh of relief. He was glad his dad understood. “Dad, I know Dareth’s base of operations is a secret, and you wouldn’t really know where I am, but you know I’d be safe! You and Dareth have been friends since you were teenagers! You know he wouldn’t betray you, let alone hurt your son.”

“Would you call and text sometimes? Maybe a letter here and there?” He frowned. “You don’t have to tell me where you are. I just-”

Cole nodded. “I know. You’re just worried. I’m all you have left since mom died. The car crash that-”

Lou absentmindedly rubbed his right leg. “Yes. It messed my leg up a bit.” He sighed and took another sip of his coffee. “I’ll tell you this, Cole. I may be worried and I did yell earlier but…” He shook his head. “You should make your own choices.”

“Are you saying I can-” Cole paused, watching his dad carefully.

Lou nodded and raised his mug at Cole as though wishing him the best. “I’ll notify the school tomorrow. Just...promise me something, son.”

Cole had finished off the last of his cake by now, picking the plate up and carrying it to the sink. He began washing it, talking a little louder over the noise of the rushing water while he scrubbed. “What’s that, Dad?”

Lou got up from the table, carefully walking over to the sink. He rested his arm on it, gently leaning against it. “Don’t leave until the day after your birthday. Leave the day after tomorrow, alright?”

He turned the faucet off after his plate was washed, turning to look at his dad. “Yeah, of course dad. I mean hey, I only turn seventeen once.” Cole chuckled a little. “Think you’ve still got mom’s cake recipe around somewhere?”

Lou shook his head. “Maybe on top of the fridge or something. She had a few recipes, but I don’t think I ever realized how much I’d miss them.”

Cole glanced toward the fridge and then back to his dad. “Can we make them together, Dad?”

“Of course we can.” Lou chuckled and went over to the stove. “Shall I cook tonight or did you wanna order out?” He raised an eyebrow. “We could order from Chen’s Noodle House.”

Cole’s eyes lit up at the name of his favorite noodle house. “Yes! Oh my god, yes! They have the best noodles in all of Ninjago!” He paused, rubbing his chin. “Actually, before we order could I...have Dareth’s number? I wanna let him know I’ll be coming.”

Lou nodded. “Of course. Can’t get there unless he knows you’re coming, right?” He gave Cole the number, turning to grab the house phone so he could order their dinner.

Heading into the living room, Cole dialed the number on his cellphone. Getting nothing the first time, he called again.

The line rang for a while, then picked up.

“Hello?” Dareth asked on the other end. He was cautious...this number wasn’t listed in his phone.

“Dareth? Hey. Don’t hang up alright?” Cole frowned and put his feet up on the couch, trying to get more comfortable.

“Cole? Is that you? Is your dad alright?” He listened, silently toying with the pen on his desk.

“Dad’s fine, I just…” He took a breath to calm himself, readjusting the grip on his phone. “I wanna ask you something. Dad and I were talking and...he said I could drop out of school and come work for you. Can I do that? Would you have a place for me there?”

Dareth was silent on the other end of the line. He did have a place for Cole. Hell, he could absolutely use someone like Cole. The question was, did Lou really think it was okay?

“Dareth?” Cole frowned. “Are you still there?”

Pulled from his thoughts by Cole’s voice, Dareth cleared his throat. “Yeah, Yeah I’m here. You sure your dad approved this?”

Cole nodded to himself. “Yeah...said I should make my own choices.”

Dareth chuckled. “Yeah, that sounds like your dad. Listen, I can’t come get you because of the errands I gotta run this week, but do you think you can meet Ronin halfway? Maybe near the dojo in town?”

Cole thought about it for a minute, listening to the faint voice of his Dad ordering dinner in the kitchen. “Yeah, but...can it wait until the day after tomorrow? I kinda wanna spend my birthday with my dad.”

“...Your birthday is tomorrow? Dang, I really gotta keep up with the people I know. How old are you now?” Dareth chuckled. “Anything you want for your birthday?”

Cole shook his head. “Nah, nothin’ really. I’ve been saving up to buy a motorcycle, almost there.” He sighed. “One day I’ll get it. Anyway, I’m seventeen tomorrow.”

“I see, I see. Alright. It can wait. I’ll let Ronin know, alright?” Dareth wrote down the information, pausing. “And Cole?”

“Yeah?” Cole frowned.

“Happy Birthday, kid. I’m glad to have you on my team.” Dareth said and ended the call.


	4. Consuming Flames.

Kai ducked down behind the decrepit desks, pulling Nya with him. “Shhh! We can’t get caught!” He carefully peeked around the back of the desk, scanning the room. “Good. No one followed us.”

“Why are we running anyway, Kai?” Nya frowned and sat down in the corner behind the desk. “With Mom and dad gone, we don’t really have anywhere to go.” She tugged a tattered blanket around herself.

It was one of the few things they had left from the house.

“I...don’t know.” Kai ran his fingers through his hair. “I just need time to figure some things out, okay?” He slid down the wall, carefully sitting down. “I don’t...I don’t know what happened at the house. I got mad and started yelling into my pillow to blow off steam.” He put his head in his hands. “I spaced out for a while and when I came to, the house was on fire and those guys were dead. So were mom and dad.” Kai rubbed his face. “Mom and Dad were beat up and the guys that attacked them were burned alive-”

Nya watched her brother. “I came to your room because I smelled smoke. The flames were spreading from under your bedroom door.” She hesitated, scooting a little closer. “Kai, do you think maybe it st-”

“Do I think maybe it started from me? That I somehow started the fire?” Kai’s eyes blurred for a moment, tears filling them. “Nya, that can’t be possible. Humans don’t just...start fires involuntarily.” He wiped at his eyes, trying to reason with himself. Something was nagging at the back of his brain. What if he had started the fire?

Was it within the realm of possibility?

Ninjago was full of creatures and myths...maybe it was possible.

Nya looked down at the floor for a moment. “Kai...something happened as the fire began to spread. I...”

Another hesitation.

“Sis, you can tell me anything.”

“I started spraying water from my hands. It was weak, and it wasn’t much, but I think...I was trying to put out the fire.” Nya shut her eyes for a moment. “I wasn’t hallucinating from the smoke, either.”

Kai looked over to her. “Are you sure?”

Nya nodded and looked over at her brother. “Yeah. I’m sure. I don’t think I can will it to happen on command just yet...maybe it’s something that has to be trained, y’know?” She shrugged and rubbed her fingers over the frayed fabric of the blanket. “Kai...what are we gonna do? We don’t have anywhere to go, no food-”

Kai shushed his sister. “We can stay here, Nya. It’ll be alright. As for food, I’ll get a job somewhere. Local restaurant or something.” He looked around, trying to imagine this place looking a bit better than it did now. “Maybe we can even scrape up enough to get a Christmas tree this year.”

Nya chuckled a little and shook her head. “You think so, huh? I suppose we could. Winter might be a bit harsh.” She looked in a dark corner, trying to imagine the tree her brother wanted to get. A slow wave of calm washed over her as she let out a sigh.

The brain is a powerful tool, even the smallest dose of imagination could help one feel safe.

“Nya, I wanted to apologize.” Kai looked at his hands. “If I really did cause the fire, I-”

“Even if you did, you didn’t kill mom and dad. They did. You just...got angry. What were you mad about anyway?” Nya raised an eyebrow and turned to look at her brother.

Kai cleared his throat. “Seems stupid now, seeing what happened. I was mad that he’s constantly working. Like I get that he was providing for us, but would it kill him to take a day off? Geez…” He sighed and turned to Nya. “Hey, it doesn’t matter now. As mad as I got at him...he deserves to rest in peace. They both do.”

Nya nodded and looked to the floor. “But we’re safe now, right? I mean, here. We’ll be safe here. They won’t be after us?”

He shrugged. “I think so, yeah. I don’t even know what they were after, Sis.”

She got up and went to the window, looking out at the cloudy sky. “I dunno. You don’t think it was us, do you?” Nya seemed uneasy at the thought. “Were they bothering out parents because they thought we were special?”

Kai shook his head and chuckled. “That’s impossible, Nya. It’s not like there’s some big underground or secret person theft going on, why would anyone do that? I dunno, maybe Dad had some gambling debts?” He looked to the door, then to his sister. “Do you want to go out for a brief walk? I think I can steal us some food, and maybe some firewood.”

Nya shrugged. “If you think we can brave the cold. It looks like its going to start snowing soon.”

“It feels cold to you? It’s not that bad.” He frowned and took his jacket off, giving it to his sister. “Can’t believe this thing is still so vibrantly red after how long I’ve had it.” Kai chuckled and helped Nya into the large jacket, making sure it was zipped properly. “It looks like it’s swallowing you, but it’ll keep you warm.”

“Are you sure it’s safe to go out? What if-”

Kai shushed his sister, gently patting her back. “It’s okay. I understand why you’re worried. It just happened, and it’s a fresh wound in our mind. I’ll keep us safe, but you can too. Stay alert and watch out, okay? Let me see if I can remember where the stores are in town.” He crossed his arms, trying to think. “Let's see there’s Doormart, Bullseye…”

Nya rolled her eyes. “Those are on the other side of the city.”

“And? The walk is good exercise, sis.” Kai shook his head. “Alright, alright. What if we can grab some noodles somewhere?”

“Where? And how?” She frowned as she turned to him. “We don’t have any money-”

“We do. I have five dollars left in my wallet from chores last week.”

"Are you sure that’s enough? Noodles are usually two dollars a bowl, and…” Nya sighed. “Alright. Let’s just hurry before the shops close-” Her stomach grumbled. “Or my stomach starts eating itself.”

Kai chuckled and began to head towards the door with her. “I think the shop is just down the street, it won't take too long.”

Nya shook her head. “I hope it doesn’t, We haven’t eaten in hours.” She opened the door, adjusting her jacket and stepping out.

He shrugged. “It may be a few blocks, but that won’t stop us-” ** _  
_**

****

**_BANG!_ **

It happened before Kai could turn his head. The sound echoed in the streets and sent people into a frenzy, screaming and running in all directions.

Disoriented by the noise and the panic, Kai slowly blinked and looked down at the sidewalk outside the doorway.

No. **  
**

**No.**

Kai knelt down and looked over Nya, her blood a darker contrast to his bright red jacket. “Where did-” His eyebrows knitted together in confusion as he looked around for the source of the shot.

There was nothing.

No visible shooter.

“Nya?” He gently shook her.

Her head lolled to the side, unresponsive.

The shot was in her heart, of course she wasn’t responsive.

She was dead.

His little sister was dead.

Yet, he couldn’t compel himself to feel anything.

It was though his emotions had been gutted, leaving an empty pit in his chest.

Amidst all the panic and screaming, Kai stayed still and shut his eyes.

When he opened them again it was like he had teleported, Nya missing from his arms. Though when he looked around, he could see he was inside the building again, a trail of blood leading from the front door to where he sat. He could hear voices muffled outside, one sounded gruff but gentle.

The crackle of slow burning flames seemed to echo around him, yet the building was clearly not on fire.

Lifting his arm, he saw fire slowly dancing along his skin.

There was no pain.

Why wasn’t there any pain? Was this part of whatever...thing he had?

The door creaked open and Kai barely reacted, only his gaze drifting upward to watch whoever was coming in.

“What happened?” Kai asked, though he couldn’t feel the words leaving his lips.

The man with the gruff voice sighed and ran a hand through his hair, trying to think of how to explain.

This kid looked so out of it from shock.

“My name is Dareth. I helped the paramedics get you inside and take your sister from your arms.” He grunted with effort as he carefully sat down next to Kai, crossing his legs. “I can’t answer your questions about the shooter. No one saw him.”

Silence.

Kai looked to the side and took in a breath to try and muster up more energy to speak. “My name is Kai. Nya and I were on the run from some men after-” He could feel the burn in his throat and the sting in his eyes as they watered as he tried to suppress the urge his body had to break down. “After they-”

“Shh. It’s alright, Kai. You don’t have to say anythin’ if you’re not comfortable with it.” Dareth shook his head. “Now, I made sure the paramedics take her somewhere you can handle all the preparations for her.” He watched Kai carefully and gazed at the flames crackling along his skin. “You’re confused, right? “

A silent nod was his only reply.

“You got anywhere to go?” Dareth rubbed the back of his neck. “I got a place you can stay, if you like. Got a couple other kids I take care of about your age-er-How old are you?”

“Fifteen.”

Dareth nodded. “Right. Okay well, I have space for you. You don’t have to pay for room and board, but-”

“There’s a catch.”

“Well not really, no. You’d just have to work for me. Nothin’ shady, don’t worry. We can talk more about it when we get there.” He shook his head, watching the flames steadily crackle around Kai.

“...can I sit here for a minute before we go?” Kai lifted his head to watch Dareth, eyes brimming with tears and threatening to spill over.

“Of course, Kai. Take as long as you need.”


End file.
